WEST LAFAYETTE - West Lafayette Village Council members said they wouldn't pursue a deal for water services with the City of Coshocton unless residents wanted them to and they apparently do.

A question in Tuesday's general election asked citizens of West Lafayette only if the village should contract with the city for water services. In unofficial vote totals from the Coshocton County Board of Elections, 429 people said to go for it with 247 saying no.

Mayor Stephen Bordenkircher of West Lafayette said the next step is to appoint a negotiating committee and to start hammering out an agreement with the city. He expected to have a committee in place by end of the month. Bordenkircher supported the deal and was happy to see residents agreeing with him.

"I think it's good not only for village infrastructure, but economic development as well," he said. "It's a win-win."

The project will see Coshocton running waterlines to the village and tie into existing infrastructure. Coshocton would then provide water and maintain services for the village's approximate 800 customers.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has also supported the potential $6.2 million project as regionalizing water and other services is a top priority of the organization.

The EPA has pledged a standalone construction design loan with 75 percent principal forgiveness and the remainder to be paid back over five years at zero percent interest. Design costs could be about $500,000. This would allow engineering drawings to start soon and be ready by the middle of 2019 for EPA consideration way ahead of next year deadlines for potential loans and grants.

Mayor Steve Mercer of Coshocton said informal talks have been going on for a few years, but he's looking forward to formulating an official deal. He also said the project probably would not be able to happen without EPA support due to the possible costs.

"We have an opportunity to receive some funding from the Ohio EPA that could make an expensive project like this happen and do so much infrastructure replacement in the village, I believe that message must have got out there," Mercer said of the question passing. "Obviously the people in the village are supportive of this."